I am here to share ideas to reach all learners, building on student strengths and successes to empower active, independent learners. By utilizing strategies to excite, inspire and engage students, we can make a difference.

Sunday, January 17, 2016

3 Words You Want to Hear from Learners

My favorite words to hear from Isaac just might be these: I did it!

Yep, it's all about Isaac, the 2 year old silly, adorable boy, (my grandson) who steals my heart every time I see him. He's gotten me thinking about the messages we give kids about what they can do and how they view obstacles. I've caught myself, offering to help, and stopped, dead, in my overly helpful "Gaga" tracks, to let him struggle just a bit, especially as he teeters toward the point of frustration in building something, getting on his little bike, or climbing up onto the couch.

It's quite the dance, especially with toddlers, to embrace that tipping point of a potential meltdown and not want to rush in and prevent it. What I've learned is that it is so essential to stand back and wait and see what happens first.

You see, when you hear the words gleefully shouted, "I did it!!" you realize that your help might just have deprived the little one of that experience of momentary joy and empowerment.

As I think about older learners as well, I believe that the same applies. How often do we step in too soon, and possibly disempower kids? What are your thoughts on building self-efficacy and confidence?

3 comments:

So I read the headline of the article and thought: “If I were a teacher what would I want to hear?” I had lots of thoughts, but I could not fit them in just 3. I read the post and I have to say that it is so true. You can give up so much for hearing students saying this words, instead of them seeking for this essay writing service. I am not saying that this is entirely bad, but they should let themselves struggles sometimes. Only this way they can achieve good results. This is my opinion, but I am sure that many will agree.

Nowadays a lot of students looking for some help with studying, because they want more free time and the best solution to save it, it's pay for papers. But you should remember use only proven essay writing and editing services, this is the main rule to get quality paper.

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About Me

I am a middle school teacher after teaching Kindergarten/1st grade and 4th grade for many years. I work/teach in northern California in the San Francisco Bay area. I have an M.A. in Clinical Psychology and I am passionate about helping kids discover their strengths and become excited about learning. I also work as a 1:1 coach/tutor with kids who struggles with learning due to challenges like ADHD, depression, executive functioning issues, Asperger's and Dyslexia. I learn more and more each day from them as I see them build their awareness and confidence that they "can learn" when given both strategies that work for them along with validation that everyone learns "their way."